In just the second weekend of Southeastern Conference play, the Lady Bulldog soccer team has already put in a lot of overtime.
Friday, Oct. 1
MSU (4-5-3, 1-2-1 SEC) droped its opening weekend game 2-1 when SEC Western Division foe Arkansas notched an overtime goal.
The Lady Razorbacks (6-4-1, 2-0-1 SEC) struck early in the contest (13th minute) as Jenni Brashear collected her fourth goal of the year on an assist from teammate Katie Taylor.
As the ball was deflected off Bulldog defender Jessica Davis inside the MSU 18, Taylor played the ball to Brashear who beat Bulldog keeper Emily Meyers for the 1-0 lead. Arkansas managed only one other shot for the entire half.
“It’s just the way it goes sometimes in soccer,” defender Karen Sandrik said. “We just had to bounce back really quickly and not dwell on it.”
Just over 10 minutes later, in the 23rd minute, senior April Berry beat Arkansas keeper Carrie Dillsaver for the equalizer.
Berry’s initial shot got blocked by an Arkansas defender, but Betty Ann Casey and Brandi Parker corralled the rebound. The duo played the ball directly back to Berry whose shot from nearly 25 yards out sailed just over the hands of the jumping Arkansas keeper and into the back of the net.
It was Berry’s first goal since Oct. 25, 2002 when she connected against No. 16 Tennessee. The goal also marked the first collegiate assist and point for Parker.
As the second half unfolded, State out-shot the Lady Razorbacks 7-5, but neither team was able to connect on the game-winner, sending the game into overtime tied at 1-1.
“I thought more and more as the game went on, the more likely it looked like we were gonna win it,” said head coach Neil MacDonald.
Only three minutes into the overtime, Arkansas netted the game winner on a Katie Hamilton header.
After the MSU defense was unable to clear the ball, Hamilton played it to the outside to Brashear who crossed the ball back to Hamilton whose header found the net for the game-winner.
“We played as well tonight as I have ever seen us play,” MacDonald said. “We were very disciplined; we stuck to the game plan and executed it well. It’s a tough one. It’s a heartbreaker.”
Sunday, Oct. 3
State returned to action on Sunday to host the LSU Tigers (6-5-1, 1-2-1 SEC) in a physical game that ended in a tie.
State almost jumped on the board less than a minute into the game on a corner kick by Kristin Peterson.
Peterson’s kick into the box found the feet of midfielder Sara Moore whose shot went just wide of the goal.
MSU got another excellent opportunity midway through the first half on a free kick from Berry. Her 30-yard blast sailed just over the crossbar leaving the score at 0-0.
Just before the halftime whistle, Casey nearly cracked the scoreboard on a one-on-one with LSU keeper Valerie Vogler. Casey swiped an arrant pass from a Lady Tiger defender and fired the ball at the goal only to have Vogler get a hand on it and redirect the ball toward the LSU sideline.
“We created a lot of opportunities for us and we were getting very hungry in the box,” said forward Ngum Suh. “It kind of makes us feel bad that we didn’t get to finish one on them.”
The second half was very much the same story as the first, marked by the inability to finish and capitalize on scoring chances.
“Finishing has been an issue and it continues to be an issue,” MacDonald said. “Everything that we have done this year as a team has been working on the offensive side of our game.”
“You find with finishing and with all strikers that once you get one goal, you might get a lot them and I think we need to get over that hump,” he added.
Each team took six total shots during the second half, but couldn’t land one across the white line.
Playing their fourth consecutive overtime game in a matter of seven days, the Bulldogs were out-shot by LSU 7-1 in the two overtime periods.
Despite the overwhelming shooting difference, neither team could find the Golden Goal. After 110 minutes on the field, the game ended in a 0-0 tie.
“I thought we played very well and that is two games where I felt that we probably dominated,” MacDonald said. “We’re not taking our chances in front of the goal and that is disappointing.”
MSU returns to action next weekend as they make their rounds through the state of Alabama to tangle with Auburn on Friday and Alabama on Sunday in pivotal SEC West matchups.